They want me there on the 10'th of November. I shall of course stall as long as possible by rearranging which should get me about an extra month.

I've got all the paperwork sorted, all the stuff I had last time when I passed their ridiculous fucking joke of a test, but like everyone facing this nonsense I expect to fail and passing a WCA with a mental illness would appear to be more luck than judgement.

If I lose I'll appeal, last time it took 9 months and in the end I won.

And the time before that it took about the same and in the end I won.

So they can go and fuck themselves if they think I'm concerned about anything other than a great deal of hassle, which to be honest I quite enjoy.

There should be a special place in hell for those who would deny people the right to enjoy cannabis.

I can't bear someone in pain and deprived of their alleviation of pain. I know cannabis can be an effective remedy for many things. I've terrible reactions to some environmental pollutants. The smell of what some neighbours blaze up here in the UK is frightful. I think it's pot but I don't know, it's like nothing I've ever smelled. When I lived in California, I'd smell someone smoking cannabis and I didn't have any trouble with that. It's alarming how pervasive the smell gets in our flat from neighbours' smoking it. What do you think about baking the cannabis in brownies or other baked goods? I've not done it myself, baking it. There's got to be a way we all get our needs met without someone suffering, you know?

I'm lucky I guess CJA, I live right next to a West Indian area so I can get weed that doesn't blow the top of your head off and (as you say) absolutely stink. Most of the people smoking it round here are old Rastas who like to be able to have a toke and go about their business, whereas what you'll be smelling is cheap skunk which kids buy to get wasted as quickly and cheaply as possible, I hate the stuff. It's like comparing White Lightning cider to a bottle of Merlot. The problem with baking these days is you need resin which, at least round here is non-existent, it's all weed, and to bake with that you need first to go through a laborious process and turn it into oil. I just smoke it using Chamomile tea instead of tobacco now that I've quit the evil cigarettes.

So yes, had my Work Capability Assessment this morning. I have no idea how it went, it's essentially a lottery, everything depends on whether the 'health care professional' is honest or a charlatan and I've had both so I'm hedging my bets. All I know is I did everything asked of me and knowing the system as well as I do if I fail then the pretty young thing who assessed me should be struck off from whatever nebulous medical position she holds.

For those not in the know it works like this, said 'health care professional' sits in front of a computer pretending to ask questions that they've thought of themselves pertaining to whatever malady you're suffering from. This is a ruse. What they are actually doing is going down a list on their screen of pre-determined 'descriptors', these being tests if you will arbitrarily invented by successive governments to determine you fitness to work. So for example a casually thrown in "Did you get the bus here today?" is actually related to a number of descriptors involving mental and physical health, from how long you can sit to if you can plan journies and travel alone. Every single thing they say is a facade, each question they ask is for the purpose of scoring or most likely not scoring points in the descriptors as they work through the tick box exercise as quickly as possible.

You can however read these descriptors online. You can see them all here.

The mental health section has 7 in total to cover disorders from Schizophrenia to Asperger's syndrome. Which seems to me like trying to determine how sick someone is by poking them with a stick. But that's what we have to work with.

Anyway I know I easily garner the required 15 points to pass their nonsensical scoring system without gaming the system but it's best to do it anyway. So I gave carefully rehearsed answers to her carefully rehearsed questions. And there was an observer there, apparently from some charity hoping to help make the system more comfortable for people with mental health issues. So that might make the pretty little thing think twice if she was planning on writing up a tissue of lies.

So we shall see. All I know is last time I was failed with 0 points I went to a Tribunal which overturned the decision in less than 5 minutes. So despite the errant behaviour of my brain when it comes to positivity I still feel pretty positive.

Placed in the 'work related activity group' but that's fine. I've no idea how long the award is for, could be anywhere from 6 months to 2 years, they don't tell you in the letter, I'll have to ring them up.